Examples of prophecies that have had a "fuller" fulfillment in Christ
- Thread starter chuckd
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There's the promise that David's son would sit on his throne, fulfilled in Solomon; that he would ever have a son sitting on his throne, fulfilled partially in a succession of heirs one following the other after the father died (sometimes with a co-regency for a while). Ultimately, this promise is kept in Christ, who is "of the seed of David after the flesh," and has sat down to reign forever.
ReformedChristian
Puritan Board Freshman
It seems Isaiah 7:14 has a historical immediate fulfillment which points to the virgin birth. When we read the passage we find however that the king rejects the message and so the broader context is extended to the house of David (Isaiah 9).
It doesn't seem that way to all interpreters. I say the referent of Is.7:14 is none other than the promised Messiah, not a precursor pointing on to an ultimate virgin birth. The passage as a whole is rich and interpretively challenging. There is a current crisis facing King Ahaz, who is immature and should obey the LORD who offers him a sign (anything he wishes) to strengthen him in confidence of God. He rejects God's offer, and in reaction the prophet denounces the king's false piety by setting forth an unprecedented sign (a virgin birth).
There is reference in the passage to other signs of the soon-passing of the present crisis, which will not bring about the end of Judah (and thereby, the end of Messianic hope). But in terms of the promised child, born of a virgin (lit. a maiden, which in OT literature is never used of someone who is married, and which always presumes virginity; the commonest Heb. term rendered "virgin" in English by contrast is sometimes clearly not referring to one such)--that Messianic sign is given precisely as assurance that Judah and the Davidites will not be wiped out as Ahaz irrationally fears, since he does not believe God will never let his promises on that score fail.
The bottom line: when the passage is divided out, the part referring to the coming Christ born of a virgin does not have an intermediate referent, i.e. someone not virgin-born, perhaps a child of the prophet's wife, or his wife-to-be, or somesuch. That part which does refer to a sooner fulfillment is predicated on the fact that the near-term deliverance is required to ensure the fulfillment of the virgin birth.
chuckd
Puritan Board Junior
Thank you. I see you've already answered one of the other prophecies in Matthew, but are the others relevant (Matt. 2:6, Matt. 2:18, Matt. 2:23, Matt. 3:3, Matt. 4:15-16)?
I'm curious if the use of "fulfillment" by Jesus and Matthew refers to a "completeness that was once incomplete", not necessarily they are coming to pass for the first time.
I take it the law was limited in scope by the Pharisees, but Jesus gives its full meaning in the second half of Matt. 5. So similarly, the prophecies came to pass in a limited way in their immediate context, but Jesus "fulfills" them in giving them their full scope. Am I off base?
Mat.2:6, ref. Mic.5:2 (Micah is contemporary of Isaiah), doesn't appear to have any intermediate considerations at all, but calls the hearers to a reconsideration of where one should be looking for deliverance. If the current occupant of the throne (a place of prestige) is degenerate or contemptible, yet don't despair of the promise; look back to the humble origin-place of that House, and remember that by divine promise there is one coming from there who will be the ideal King.
You could interpret the passage in Is.40:3, quoted in Mt.3:3, as bound within the context of a promised return of a remnant from captivity. But there's no particular person in view (whether 8thC or 7thC B.C.) who is the crier, and the LORD's coming--if it be strictly associated with the return--lacks the fulfillment promised. But if the period of preparation is lengthened, and if the return is seen only to be completed with the arrival of the LORD (in the person of the Messiah) John the Baptist does, in fact, embody the persona of the crier, and Jesus' coming marks the true end of the exile.
The whole OT is a book of expectancy, in myriad ways pointing to a fulfillment embodied in one glorious Person. All the prophets, priests, and kings of Israel were typological, and therefore prophetic signs pointing to someone beyond them. Israel's Exodus was both prophesied, and the prophecy and its fulfillment in the time of Moses were prophetic of a greater exodus in the time of Christ, see Lk.9:31. The experiences of God's people, they take and reflect upon, in light of past experience (later OT looks back on earlier OT, so Hos.11:1 looks back on the Exodus; Jer.31:15 reflects on Gen.35:18f) and project continued hope into the future. Both the former and the latter record combine to enrich the whole complex tapestry woven to anticipate Messiah, to provide innumerable prefigurements that will ensure maximum recognition when he arrives. Nathaniel recognizes Jesus (Jn.1:49) when his private reverie upon the person of Jacob is rehearsed back to him by Jesus, to give but one example.
If there is, here or there, anticipatory fulfillment in the OT as a prophecy is apparently answered by a clear fulfillment, that doesn't mean it cannot or will not have a greater fulfillment through the Messiah. It's also possible that immediate or early prophetic fulfillment has a lesser significance, merely an incidental connection to more important prophesies that directly point to the Person and work of Christ. He fulfills the whole OT, but how he fulfills it does vary.
I hope this is helpful.
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